Mimosa Fragrance For Her and For Him
I would send you cassie if there were any left whom it delights.’ So wrote the French novelist Prosper Mérimée to Mademoiselle Jenny Dacquin, the daughter of a Boulogne notary whom he had been corresponding with for more than forty years – his Unknown. And what flower shall Carmen fling to Don José? A cassia blossom.
Not so for sisters. Cassie and mimosa are unkissing cousins in the acacia family. The masses of lemon scented pompoms on the brittle branches look as good as they smell. When the British explorer Captain James Cook returned to France from Australia in the 18th century, he brought with him mimosas, which have thrived in the mild Mediterranean winters. Every February, the Massif de Tanneron in Provence erupts into waves of golden yellow when the mimosa blooms. A Fauvist painting come to life.
These hills and also South India and Egypt furnish floral essences for the perfumer’s pencil: mimosa, which has a note of cucumber peel with violet blossom and milk of almond running through it; cassie, rather similar, cut across with a rich, spicy lift. These are among the most complex and delicate essences obtainable, and they are to be handled with skin and experience.
In contrast to the misleading buoyant fluffiness captured in the yellow blooms, in both mimosa and cassie essences there’s a feel of the blossoms’ darker femme fatale side: the best example of the genre being Frédéric Malle’s 2008 Une Fleur de Cassie, which captures both mimosa and cassie in a sumptuous seduction, beginning cool and powdery, and ending in suede and spice. It’s an acquired taste, however, not only because it’s inimitable, but also because the average consumer might not be familiar with the scent of mimosa. Caron’s Farnesiana is a temptress too, but in a much more subtle vein. She respects the ambivalence of cassie and mimosa, contrasting the flowers’ dark rich side with almond meringues and candied violets.
Moving closer to the pale and flouncy end of the spectrum are L’Artisan Parfumeur Mimosa Pour Moi and Jo Malone Mimosa Cardamom – the two that most closely resemble mimosa on the branch, and are thus my favourites. Mimosa Pour Moi has been discontinued (cue the crying emoji) but if you can get your hands on some, it’s a playful summer treat. It’s light yet textured and does great on skin, delivering a delicious lingering sillage. The closest in feel is Jo Malone Mimosa Cardamom, a brightly floral cologne that will give you wings on a grey February morning. Jo Malone also make a fantastic matching candle that fills the room with the perfume of spiced mimosas.
Despite the fact that in my suggestions I focus only on fragrances marketed to women, I encourage men to try the above-mentioned mimosa suggestions; Une Fleur de Cassie is very good as a man’s fragrance, for example. For those with more classical tastes – male or female – the Czech u0026amp; Speake Mimosa Cologne might be more suitable. Combining mimosa with jasmine and ylang-ylang, lightly sweetened and warmed with a hint of benzoin, it smells gorgeous.
